Martha forthwith hurried away, attended by a much younger female.
"Till your room is prepared, sir," said he, "perhaps you will have
no objection to sit down before our fire?"
"Not the least," said I; "nothing gives me greater pleasure than to
sit before a kitchen fire. First of all, however, I must settle
with my guide, and likewise see that he has something to eat and
drink."
"Shall I interpret for you?" said the landlord; "the lad has not a
word of English; I know him well."
"I have not been under his guidance for the last three hours," said
I, "without knowing that he cannot speak English; but I want no
interpreter."
"You do not mean to say, sir," said the landlord, with a surprised
and dissatisfied air, "that you understand Welsh?"
I made no answer, but turning to the guide thanked him for his
kindness, and giving him some money asked him if it was enough.
"More than enough, sir," said the lad; "I did not expect half as
much. Farewell!"
He was then about to depart, but I prevented him saying:
"You must not go till you have eaten and drunk. What will you
have?"
"Merely a cup of ale, sir," said the lad.
"That won't do," said I; "you shall have bread and cheese and as
much ale as you can drink. Pray," said I to the landlord, "let
this young man have some bread and cheese and a large quart of
ale."
The landlord looked at me for a moment, then turning to the lad he
said:
"What do you think of that, Shon? It is some time since you had a
quart of ale to your own cheek."
"Cheek," said I - "cheek! Is that a Welsh word? Surely it is an
importation from the English, and not a very genteel one."
"Oh come, sir!" said the landlord, "we can dispense with your
criticisms. A pretty thing indeed for you, on the strength of
knowing half-a-dozen words of Welsh, to set up for a Welsh critic
in the house of a person who knows the ancient British language
perfectly."
"Dear me!" said I, "how fortunate I am! a person thoroughly versed
in the ancient British language is what I have long wished to see.
Pray what is the meaning of Darfel Gatherel?"
"Oh sir!" said the landlord, "you must answer that question
yourself; I don't pretend to understand gibberish!"
"Darfel Gatherel," said I, "is not gibberish; it was the name of
the great wooden image at Ty Dewi, or Saint David's, in
Pembrokeshire, to which thousands of pilgrims in the days of popery
used to repair for the purpose of adoring it, and which at the time
of the Reformation was sent up to London as a curiosity, where it
eventually served as firewood to burn the monk Forrest upon, who
was sentenced to the stake by Henry the Eighth for denying his
supremacy.
